Suddenly, a small explosion appeared, and Lin Mu's hand was pushed back.
"This… I did not expect this…" Xukong said.
Lin Mu could hear the shock in his master's voice and knew that he probably discovered something beyond what was in the normal scope of things.
"What's the matter, senior? Is it not Ice Elemental spirit Qi?" Lin Mu questioned.
"No… it's not." Xukong said, his voice low.
"Then… what is it?" Lin Mu questioned as he looked at the crystal that was half gone.
The fire elemental spirit Qi in his hand had also been consumed entirely by it. Lin Mu couldn't tell if this was a test that was positive or negative. With no clear conclusion on his hand, he could only wait for the master to answer.
"This Qi… it's actually Yin spirit Qi…" Xukong stated.
"Huh? Yin spirit Qi?" Lin Mu asked, feeling confused.
While he knew about Yin itself, he didn't know about the yin spirit Qi itself. He couldn't recall it being an element either.
"What is that, senior?" Lin Mu questioned.
"Everything in the world was born from the Infinity we call Wuji. Then from Wuji came the Supreme 'Taiji.' And finally, from the Taiji were the Duality 'Liangyi'. This Duality is nothing but the dual aspects of Yin And Yang.
Everything else that we see in the world was said to have come from the duality and can be expressed in their form; Water is Yin, fire is Yang; Hardness is Yang And Softness is Yin. There are an infinite number of examples I can give you.
The common elemental spirit Qi you see can have two forms as well. Even if we consider Water as belonging to the Yin side primarily, it also has Yang aspects to it, such as its ability to give life.
The same can be said about fire. Even if it is primarily of Yang, there are also Yin fires that are associated with death.
But the Yin spirit Qi is different from all of them. It encompasses the essence of Yin of all the elements and attributes, reaching the position of top." Xukong explained in detail.
The information was a bit too much for Lin Mu and he had to ponder on it for several minutes to get a grasp on it. But after an hour, he finally felt like he had some understanding.
"Then does this mean… in Yin Spirit Qi, all other types of spirit Qi that fall on the yin side can be found?" Lin Mu asked.
"Yes, that's right!" Xukong replied.
Lin Mu thought over it a bit more and several questions popped up in his mind.
"Then if we compare the four categories of the elements or attributes… where do the Yin and Yang fall?" Lin Mu questioned.
"This is a bit difficult to explain and for you to understand. Even great Daoists who have had hundreds of millenniums of cultivation have not understood it fully.
Though if I were to say it in crude terms, both Yin and Yang are considered to be in the category of derivative elements." Xukong answered.
"I see… but seeing as how they encompass all elements and contain them within them, how strong are they? Are they as strong as the three primordial elements?" Lin Mu asked next.
"Hmm… while they do contain all mortal, heavenly and derivative elements, they are still not comparable to the three primordial elements. At most, they can come close to the same level, but they still won't be equal." Xukong replied.
"Why's that? From what you've said, they are the source of everything in the world." Lin Mu asked feeling doubtful.
"Ahaha!" Hearing this, Xukong couldn't help but laugh, making Lin Mu feel strange.
"Did I ask something, wrong senior?" Lin Mu asked, feeling concerned.
"No, no… I just recalled something." Xukong said, as a hint of reminiscence passed through his eyes.
"There was once a time when I had asked this same question." Xukong spoke.
"You did?" Lin Mu asked with wide eyes.
"Indeed. I was very young at that time, and confused too. I was learning my place in the universe and didn't know a lot of things, even if was considerably strong. It was at that time I met a certain person.
He was the one who guided me and taught me different things. I spent a lot of time with him, until finally the situations changed and we parted." Xukong stated.
Lin Mu felt like this person that Xukong was talking about must have been really special to him.
"Was this person… Your master, Senior?" Lin Mu questioned.
"My master? No… but perhaps a teacher. That person has had many disciples in his life but I was not one of them." Xukong answered.
"Oh? Did you not want to become one?" Lin Mu asked.
~Sigh~
"It is not something you can understand now. Perhaps I'll tell you about that in the future." Xukong said in a complex tone.
Understanding that he may have asked something sensitive, Lin Mu decided to hold back.
"Now then… for your question about the three primordial elements…" Xukong said before taking pause.
"There are many stories about how the entire universe came into being and there are many versions of it. Every civilization will have its own version and they will believe in it. But those that pursue the path of cultivation will start to learn the truth.
In fact, there are many experts who cultivate not to live for an eternity and become immortal, but rather to learn the mysteries of the universe and find out about its origin.
There is indeed a common version that most experts approve of though." Xukong continued.
"And what is that, senior?" Lin Mu questioned.
He felt a drive to know it more than ever before. He didn't know why, but it was a calling for him. Lin Mu couldn't even consciously tell that he had that. It was simply existing.
Neither Xukong nor Lin Mu noticed the fact that the ring on Lin Mu's hand was faintly glimmering.
"Listen carefully then. This is something that might help you a lot in the future and maybe even serve as a guide." Xukong spoke.
Lin Mu watched on with rapt attention and didn't even blink as he waited for him to start.
"Like I said before, everything came from the Taiji which is composed of Yin and Yang. But do you know where Wuji comes from?" Xukong questioned.
"No, I don't." Lin Mu responded.
"It is said that when nothing existed, the void came into existence. This void had nothing in it and there was no quality to it.
Then came into existence what we call as Chaos. But this chaos was different. It did not move or do anything. It was frozen in existence.
Until finally… Time started to flow.
These were the three elements, Space, Time and Chaos. When all three existed together, it was only then that the universe started to be born.
Chaos expanded within the space as time allowed it to move. An unknown amount of time passed until finally the chaos had expanded enough that it could no longer contain itself.
It exploded into an infinite mass that continued to expand more and more. That was nothing but the Wuji. And from that, everything that we know came into being.
Thus, you could say that the three primordial elements are the source of Yin and Yang. They couldn't have come into existence if even one of them was missing. Those three elements compose the base of our universe or even the cosmos itself!" Xukong explained in detail.
Lin Mu could almost see the entire birth of the universe happening in front of his eyes as Xukong spoke.
He could see the vast emptiness filled with nothingness before a 'void' appeared. Then he could see a ball of chaos appeared. Time started to flow and got things working. It was then that the chaos turned into a volatile mix of everything and changed its appearance constantly, making it hard to tell what its color or shape was.
Lin Mu didn't even realize that he had entered a state of trance. But Xukong did discover it quickly.
He didn't stop his explanation then though and finished it, before letting Lin Mu continue his trance.
"This child… his comprehension is monstrous at times…" Xukong muttered to himself.
He simply decided to observe Lin Mu while also checking up on the ring.
'Hmm… the altar is rather calm… this means it's not the ring that's doing anything this time. But rather… Lin Mu himself…' Xukong thought.
Hours passed like this, until an entire day passed. But even then, Lin Mu did not wake up from his state of trance. Xukong couldn't perceive the outside either, thus just kept on watching Lin Mu.
It mattered little what happened outside, and it was more important for Lin Mu to break his trance on his own.
'Who knows what his gains will be this time… though there might not be any apparent gains at all too.' Xukong thought.
"Many have embarked on the path to find the origin, but none have successfully reached the end. Even those old monsters at the top are lost and can't progress any further…" Xukong muttered to himself as a few memories flashed past his eyes.
Silence descended in the Sleepscape as the three plants in it gently swayed. The spirit apple tree kept on growing apples at its own pace while the Wood Spirit Tulip absorbed spirit Qi and cultivated.
Finally the newest addition, the Purple Sickle Amaranth continued converting the normal spirit Qi into wood attribute spirit Qi, increasing its concentration in the air.
